For Jill Biden fans, Delaware book signing an opportunity for a short, personal meeting

Wilmingtonian Marie Gillespie got her Mother's Day gift early, and on Saturday took the book her children gave her to be signed by its author, someone she'd always admired.

Dr. Jill Biden, who recently launched her memoir "Where the Light Enters: Building a Family, Discovering Myself," was signing copies at a Wilmington-area Barnes & Noble. A small crowd came for autographs and to have a quick chat with the former second lady.

"I felt tired for her. She has so much energy, and her life is full of excitement, but she has to have a lot of stamina," said Gillespie, who'd read the book. "I told her I'd pray for her."

There were no speeches about politics, no grandstanding for her husband who is once again on the campaign trail. Each autograph came only with a short, private moment.

Biden didn't take questions from the few news reporters documenting the signing.

There wasn't much reason to talk politics. That's not what her memoir is about, and many women who'd come with their copies already want her in the White House.

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Dr. Jill Biden signs a copy of her new memoir, "Where the Light Enters," for Baltimore resident Elaine Crock Saturday at Barnes & Noble near Wilmington. (Correction: An earlier version of this story misidentified the Baltimore resident in this photo. It has been corrected.) (Photo: Adam Duvernay/ The News Journal)

"I hope she's the first lady," said Elaine Crock, a Biden fan from Baltimore.

Biden, an English professor at Northern Virginia Community College, filled her 200-page memoir with quotes from favorite authors and shared joy and heartbreak from her life.

She wrote about relationships with the children of her husband, former Delaware senator and former Vice President Joe Biden, and about growing up in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, as the oldest of five girls in a close family whose traditions she keeps.

She wrote about her divorce before Joe Biden came into her life, and she wrote about turning down his marriage proposal five times before she finally said yes in 1977.

They are the kind of personal stories many who came Saturday were eager to read.

"I'm very fond of the Bidens," said Debbie Feinson, who only recently moved to Delaware. "I've seen Jill on TV several times and I think she's a very special person."